Mrs Edward Elric
by Aiiro Hoshi
Summary: It was then that Cindy Ellens knew she was in love with Edward Elric. OC/Ed One-sided. Emphasis on the one-sided.


**Brief Commentary:  
**This one kind of hit me when I started thinking about OCs...and their infamous reputation to usually be in some kind of relationship with one of FMA's leading Bishies - namely, Edward Elric, Roy Mustang (sometimes), and Envy. So yeah, I was just thinking about it...and this thing kind of occurred to me. This is one-sided on the OC's part, I assure you - while there are good OC/Ed fics, I'm not too big on those. Anyway, review if that's what pleases you.

_You couldn't be more wrong, darling  
I never gave out these signs  
You misunderstand all meaning  
Snap out of it  
I'm not falling for this one_

* * *

**Mrs. Edward Elric**  
_One-Shot_

"The Fullmetal Alchemist is in town!"  
"Really? I've heard about what he does - he's the people's alchemist, right?"  
"Yes, yes! Let's all go out today to see him - perhaps I might be able to shake his hand."  
"To think, becoming a State Alchemist at 12..."  
"That was three years ago."

Cindy sleepily awoke to the sound of her father, Mr. Ellens, speaking urgently to her mother, Mrs. Ellens, joy and excitement fierce in both of their voices. It wasn't hard to hear them; they lived in a four room apartment, and even if someone was in another room, the walls were thin and hollow so anything that made noise carried easily. Curious, the eleven year-old rubbed her eyes and crawled out of her small bed, straightening her nightgown (which had hitched up a bit) and walking out of her room towards the kitchen, where she knew they would be.

"G'morning," she greeted, voice still a bit muted from her previous state of rest.

"Oh, Cindy," her mother smiled, "Good morning! Did we wake you up?"

She nodded, glancing towards the stove to see if anything was being made for breakfast.

"Sorry, looks like we're back to cold porridge again today," her father told her, a bit sadly. "We're out of firewood, and I'll have to wait for my next paycheck before I can get some more, among other things."

"Aww," she pouted her lip. "But I _hate_ cold porridge. Can't we have something else?"

"We don't have much else to chose from, Cindy," Mrs. Ellens shook her head, but changed the subject. "Did you hear what your father and I were talking about earlier?"  
"Edward...Eric...or something?"  
"Ah, close - his name is Edward _Elric_, the Fullmetal Alchemist. He's a bit older than you, and he's a State Alchemist - he actually helps average people like us!"  
"He happens to be coming into town today, so I thought maybe we should go outside and greet him along with everyone else as he passes by. Would you like to come as well?"  
"...sure. Lu told me she wouldn't be able to go to the creek with me today anyway," Cindy shrugged.  
"Okay," she received a smile from her mother. "Go wash your face, comb your hair, and get off any dirt - put on your Sunday best, while you're at it; Mr. Elric is a very important person!"

She gave her a mock salute and strode straight to the small bathroom adjoining to the kitchen and her parent's bedroom. The eleven year-old shut the door behind herself and reached for a ragged face towel - after wetting it and lathering it in a bit of soap, she scrubbed her face, and hands with it, careful to get out the dirt from underneath her fingernails. After deciding that the small smudges of mud on her legs wouldn't be noticed too much, she rinsed a few streaks of soil from her arms and mopped herself up, emerging slightly pink in the face from the rough material of the face towel.

Cindy could hear the murmurs of her parents in their bedroom, which meant they were readying themselves as well - she proceeded to re-enter her own room, closing the door behind herself again. She ventured towards the old trunk where she kept her good clothes, and after a bit of rummaging, pulled out a pale purple sundress with a few frills and ribbons here and there. It was sleeveless and not too long, so she wouldn't be hot outside in the 90 degree Fahrenheit weather. Satisfied that she would be presentable in it, she pulled off her night gown and slipped on the dress, before looking around for her straw sunhat and her nicest sandals.

They weren't too hard to find, as her room was rather small and she didn't own much. The eleven year-old paused by the rustic hand mirror that lay on her bed table, suddenly remembering that it was necessary for her to brush her wild, wavy hair. It was a light brown color, which her parents insisted was lovely and soft - it reminded them of the sweetness of chocolate. It reminded her of the dull color of drying mud. A bit reluctantly drawing the brush through the knotted rat's nests, it took her a good ten minutes before her hair was in what she thought was going to be its best condition - long and slightly wavy.

Pale hazel eyes glared back at her from the small mirror, and Cindy turned away from it with a huff, dropping it unceremoniously back into its place on her bedside table and snatching her hat off the floor, clomping out of her room in her best sandals.

"Mum, dad, I'm ready to go when you are," she said, raising her voice only slightly.

"All right, we're almost ready, too," Mr. Ellens called back.

The wait was another seven minutes or so before the Ellens' family stepped outside in their Sunday best to try and catch a glimpse of the Fullmetal Alchemist. They were informed it would be another half an hour or so before he arrived, possibly even longer - in the meantime, Cindy's mother fussed over her daughter's hair, eventually convincing her to allow her to put it into two long braids on either sides of her head.

She had just finished when cheering from the towns people suddenly started up, announcing his arrival. Cindy shifted from one foot to the other, suddenly anxious. What would he look like? Was he a nice person? How old was he exactly? She had been told that he was a few years older than herself, and had become a State Alchemist at twelve...well, he couldn't be _that_ much older, could he?

Her ears suddenly hurt as the cheering around her dramatically went up in volume, and she struggled to see around the moving bodies of the other townspeople, wanting to just get a quick look at him. She was accidentally shoved forward to the very front of the crowd, just as he was passing through, a suit of armor clanking dutifully behind him.

Cindy stared at him, hard, and felt her heart jump as she took him in. He wasn't very tall, maybe about six or seven inches bigger than her - with the most amazing golden hair and eyes she had ever seen. His skin was tanned from endless days of sun, and teeth had never seemed quite so white as he gave the crowd a big, pleased grin and waved, hands adorned with gloves waved high in the air.

Her cheeks grew a little red as she kept staring at him, until he seemed to sense her eyes burning into him as he turned in her direction. Their eyes met, and she froze, face reddening even more than before. He stared at her for a second or two, eyes wide as if he were shocked to see her standing there - then his gaze left her face and he shook his head before continuing on, but not before muttering something to the suit of armor as he strode down the rest of the dirt road road.

It was then that Cindy Ellens knew she was in love with Edward Elric.

* * *

Several years passed, Cindy soon turning a happy, healthy fourteen and still lost in the romantic fantasies prone to children and adolescents alike. Ever since that fateful day (fateful to her, anyway - while she didn't like to think about it, it may have meant nothing to Edward), she had faithfully retained her crush on the Fullmetal Alchemist; the majority of her development over the past three years was centered around what Edward might think about her decisions.

Instead of taking notes in class, she would write endless patterns involving the words "Mrs. Edward Elric" complete with little hearts, over and over again, not caring how harshly she was scolded afterward.

She took to imagining dating him, and how their dating would lead to engagement, and eventually marriage, complete with their own family - twin boys and a girl; she had even thought of names for them. Her fantasies ranged from a casual kiss to a passionate embrace, and she would lie giggling on her bed hours after she was supposed to go to sleep, just thinking about his face, and his eyes, and how he might smell, or how he might smile when he was pleased, or frown when he was irritated.

At one point she had even attempted learning alchemy from a local who had a little bit of skill, but after many months with little to no success, she was forced to give up and accept that she simply hadn't the talent.

Her parents tolerated her feelings, unwilling to crush them quite so soon, but they still worried on occasion that she would get her heart broken. They hadn't informed her, but recently Edward Elric had been seen around a lot with a woman (an automail mechanic, even), his own age - 18. Rumored to be his girlfriend, or even fiance, the Fullmetal Alchemist had yet to completely deny the wild speculations. News like this traveled slowly in backwater towns, so it would be a while until it finally reached Cindy's ears.

However, news that _had_ traveled fast was the announcement that Edward Elric would be passing through the area again, and another opportunity for her to catch a glimpse of him would therefore be present. Her energy had doubled, and lately she had taken care to wash her face carefully and take baths a little more frequently, and keep her clothes neater and cleaner than usual. The Ellens only watched on in slight concern as she busied herself, preparing her appearance for the State Alchemist's appearance in their relatively small town.

Cindy carefully planned on how to introduce herself to him, knowing that if she just threw herself at him she would automatically be rejected. She could go slow - she had the patience, and she certainly felt that she loved him enough for anything. Perhaps once the excitement had died down, and when he went to eat somewhere (his appetite was infamous, but he still managed to retain his beautiful figure), she might casually approach him and try talking to him.

The day of his arrival had approached as slowly as a tortoise, but Cindy didn't mind as she washed her face once again, brushed her hair until she thought it seemed to shine, and slipped on one of her best hand-made dresses. It was simple, and didn't look too professional, but she liked it and thought maybe he would, too - he made almost everything himself, he might think it was a good accomplishment.

Her hair had grown longer over the years, and almost reached her waist - Cindy was quite proud of it and asked her mother to braid it for her like she had the last time she had seen Edward. She thought she looked nicer, more mature with her hair braided, than when it was down. Mrs. Ellens hadn't even finished when the cheering started up, and unable to wait for the braid to be tied back, Cindy lept up and ran outside, squeezing her way through the crowd in hopes of a glimpse of him.

Cindy's face positively lit up as she managed to force her way to almost the very front, eyes already focusing on his silloute, which was a bit far off still. The suit of armor was behind him again, and next to the suit of armor was a woman - her suspicion and fear spiked, but she realized that the woman and the armor seemed to be speaking to one another, and immediately relaxed.

As Edward passed, she waved energetically - disappointed when he didn't look directly at her, though his eyes skimmed thoughtlessly over the mass of people as he waved back. It didn't matter, she told herself, she would get to actually _talk_ to him later - much better than just watching him pass by. So her cheeks glowed pink as she watched his back grow smaller and smaller, and soon he veered around a street corner, and she was unable to see him any longer.

It wasn't until her hair whipped into her face that she sheepishly remembered that she has forgotten to wait until her mother was finished with her hair.

_Later that evening..._

It was quickly spread that the Fullmetal Alchemist had decided to eat at the local diner, just three blocks away from Cindy's house. She cleaned herself all over again, just to make sure she was presentable, and kept drawing her brush over her pale brown locks, before requesting of her mother one last time for that day to put her hair into a braid.

"Just make sure you wait this time," Mrs. Ellen's warned her playfully. "I don't want you running back in with your hair a complete mess just because you saw a boy with blonde hair go by - and don't tell me you haven't done that before, because you have."

"_Mum_," Cindy whined, "That was when I was _twelve_, why do you have to bring that up now?"

"Because I exist to embarrass you," she teased, fingers working skillfully and quickly through her daughter's hair as a long braid began to form.

Another minute passed before the braiding process had finished - Cindy skipped gleefully through the door, not noticing the sad smiles her parents wore as she left. Her intentions were very clear, and they were unhappy to know that she would be disappointed.

The trip to the diner took less than eight minutes, and through the glass she could already see a bit of Edward - he was sitting on the very far right of the restaurant, with his back to her. He seemed to be talking to someone again, Cindy assuming it to be the suit of armor.

As she opened the door, the bells above it chimed faintly, and she waved to Mr. Oteo, who was a friend of the family, before starting towards the Fullmetal Alchemist himself, bursting with nervous excitement. She stopped short when she caught a glimpse of who he was talking to. And it wasn't the suit of armor, his younger brother.

It was the woman who had been talking to the armor earlier.

She was older than Cindy, to be sure, and she looked completely at ease with Edward. She had pretty blue eyes and straw-blonde hair, at least ten shades away from Cindy's own hair color. He said something, and the woman burst into giggles, before flicking him on the nose. Her brain went as blank as a sheet of paper as the Fullmetal Alchemist leaned in and kissed the woman's own nose, causing a deep blush to darken both of their faces.

"Jesus, Ed, what are you thinking, doing that here?" the woman hissed, although from the smile on her face, she seemed just fine with it. Cindy didn't know how long she stood there, frozen stiff, until the woman noticed her and smiled at her.

"Who're you?"

"Eh?" Edward turned around and glanced at her. He waved after a few seconds of silence. "Hey."

"H-..." Cindy couldn't bring herself to say anything as she felt her face turn pink.

"You okay?" the woman began to rise out of her seat to approach her, but she shook her head and stepped back, clutching her straw sunhat with both hands, holding it over her chest.

"F-fine," she mumbled, before turning and tearing out of the diner, ignoring the concerned glance from Mr. Oteo.

She didn't stop running until she made it to the creek, where she and her friend Lu used to play often, before her crush on Edward Elric had developed. Tears had found their way down her stricken face as she sat on the sodden, muddy river bank - the color of her hair. Her ugly hair.

She wished, suddenly, that her hair wasn't brown; she wished her eyes weren't hazel. She wished her family wasn't as poor, she wished she was older, she wished she was prettier. Why couldn't she be someone else, someone like that woman?

Cindy let her face fall into her hands as she began to shake with sobs, for her childish heart had been broken by a man who had never even known her name.

* * *

_If you're wondering why Ed stared at her in the beginning, it was because for a second, he thought she was Nina - the long hair in two braids, the eyes...you get it? I don't remember what color Nina's eyes were exactly, so I kind of guessed. But, neh, hopefully I got the effect I was going for here..._


End file.
